


A Little Bit

by sarsmiles



Category: Horizon: Zero Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Some dark themes, lots of Aloy introspection cause I think she's neat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-17
Updated: 2019-12-17
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:41:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21829915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarsmiles/pseuds/sarsmiles
Summary: Aloy has always been alone, and she's pretty comfortable with it. Or at least, that's what she thinks until she rescues a woman from a cage and ends up on a cross-country escort mission.Now she doesn't know what to think at all.
Relationships: Aloy (Horizon: Zero Dawn)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 67





	A Little Bit

**Author's Note:**

> I like giving my favorite characters girlfriends*

Aloy was on a mission. That wasn’t surprising. She was always on a mission. That was her life in a nutshell, wasn’t it? Aloy, go here. Aloy, go there. Aloy, save the village. Aloy, save the world.

Even now, months after defeating Hades, she still had more work to do. Honestly, it was her own fault. She just couldn’t say no. To anyone. Ever.

Make the world a better place, right, Elisabet?

Killing bandits and rescuing hostages probably wasn’t what she had meant, but Aloy had to get with the times. The last man standing was the bandit leader: an ugly fellow, covered in spiky skeleton armor and wielding a machine gun. It was always machine guns. Aloy wished they were a bit more transportable so she could always wield a machine gun, too. But alas, a bow would have to do.

It was over quickly. After fighting a horde of massive war machines made of apex technology, a couple of humans were nothing. Her arrow found his skull, and he slumped to the ground with a gurgle.

The hostages, all trapped within a large cage on the left side of the clearing, cheered. Aloy immediately released them. They streamed out— men and women and children— thanking her profusely. Almost the entire village of Skyhaven had been captured. Only a few farm hands had been missed. They were the ones who had begged Aloy to save the others.

The mayor of the town, a portly woman who had been one of the first out of the cage, promised her a generous reward before excusing herself. The village people were finally starting to disperse back to Skyhaven, the loud, excited talking dulling to a low rumble, when Aloy heard it.

“Hey! Hey! You! The beautiful red-haired warrior!”

Aloy turned, craning her head upward, to see another cage, hung from the top balcony. Inside was a young woman, about Aloy‘s age, with dark brown hair, light brown skin, and blue eyes. She waved vigorously. “Don’t forget about me!”

“Got it!” Aloy called back. It took her a moment to assess. The easiest thing to do would be to cut the rope holding the cage, but the woman would probably be injured in the fall.

Aloy sighed. Nothing could ever be simple. She quickly scaled the bandit scaffolding and leapt onto the cage.

“Wow, nice grip,” the woman remarked, clutching the back bars as the cage swung wildly. “Your finger stamina must be incredible.”

Aloy popped the cage open with her spear. “Grab onto me,” she said, reaching out with a hand.

“You don’t have to ask me twice.” The woman leapt into Aloy’s arms. It drove the wind from her chest.

“Hang on,” she continued when she got her breath back. It was redundant as the woman had wrapped both her arms tightly around Aloy’s neck.

Aloy threw her grappling hook over the beam supporting the cage, and rappelled them both to the ground.

“Gods, your strong,” the woman commented once Aloy released her and collected her rope. She gave Aloy a wicked grin. “I like my women strong.”

Aloy had been flirted with enough to know what flirting was. She still didn’t quite know how to deal with it. “Thanks. Are you the last hostage?”

“Yup.” The woman popped the ‘p’ loudly. “Everyone else was in the other one.”

“Why were you alone?”

The woman shrugged. “They said something about ransom. I guess there’s a price on my head.”

That caught Aloy’s attention. “What for?”

“I ran away from home. My parents want me back.” The woman leaned forward, still smiling. She hadn’t stopped. It was a bit uncanny. “Speaking of which— you’re more than capable, considering you just took out the whole camp single-handedly. Would you be able to escort me back home? I’d never make it by myself, but I bet I could with you. Plus, my parents will give you that bounty money I talked about. It’s a win-win.”

 _She’s a talker_ , thought Aloy. _And I never say no_. “How much is the bounty?”

“I don’t know the specifics, but a lot.”

Aloy would do it without the reward, but shards and resources on the table always made things a bit more worth it. “Fine, I’ll take you. Where do your parents live?”

“Sunstone Rock.”

“That’s—“ Aloy paused. “...really far.”

“I know. But I promise I’ll make it worth your while.” She winked.

Aloy looked away. “I’ll do it. But it’ll be a long journey. Do you have any supplies?”

“Nope.”

Aloy sighed. “I’ll take care of it.”

“Beautiful, strong, _and_ kind. How’d I get so lucky?”

Aloy ignored that, too. She began to loot the bodies without another word. She’d need supplies for two now, after all.

“We should probably introduce ourselves, since we’ll be together for a while,” the woman said. She perched herself on a nearby crate, and leaned back on her arms. “I’m Lana.”

“Aloy,” Aloy replied.

“You don’t talk or act Nora, but you dress like one. Are you Nora?”

“I was raised in the Sacred Lands, yes.”

“I’m surprised you’re willing to take me into Carja territory then.”

“I go where I like.” Aloy wrinkled her nose as she flipped a body over to search its pockets. It had already begun to smell. “Plus, I’ve been to Sunstone. I know the area well.”

“Perfect, then,” Lana said with another grin.

Lana chattered inanely while Aloy picked the rest of the camp clean. She tossed Lana bedroll and a bag full of supplies. The woman handled them with no complaints.

“How comfortable would you be with riding?” Aloy asked after a few minutes down the dirt road away from Hollow Fort bandit camp. Snow dusted the ground, but it hadn’t yet begun to accumulate. Luckily they wouldn’t have to deal much with snow as they were heading towards warmer weather.

“Riding?”

“I can... control machines. I can make it so two Striders will carry us instead of walking. We’ll cover much more ground if we do.”

Lana laughed delightedly. “That’s incredible! I don’t know if I can ride or not, but I’d be willing to try.”

“Great,” Alloy said, relieved. It would only take a few weeks instead of months to reach Sunstone on Striders. She pointed to a stone sitting under a tree. “Wait there. I’ll go get them.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Lana saluted.

Aloy returned mere minutes later with the Striders. She loaded hers with her pack before helping Lana. The woman seemed as smiley as ever, but she was hesitant with the machine. She didn’t seem to know what to touch.

“How do you do this? Control it? I’d heard of something like it, but…“ Lana trailed off.

“It’s hard to explain,” Aloy said. “To get on you put your hand here, then swing your leg up over— Yeah, like that. You can just settle into that spot on its back.”

“How do I tell it to go? Or does it only listen to you?”

“You rap its side with your legs. To stop, pull back here on its head.”

“I’m going to fall off,” Lana laughed, wobbling. “Try not to make too much fun of me when I do.”

“You hold on with your knees,” Aloy said. “Here, watch.”

She vaulted up onto the Strider with ease, kicked it once with her legs, and steered it carefully around Lana. “You pull its head in the direction you want to go.”

“Okay,” Lana said. She kicked, and the Strider leapt forward. Her arms pinwheeled before she managed to grasp the head and yank, bringing her to an abrupt stop. She almost toppled face first to the ground.

Aloy couldn’t help herself. She laughed. “We can just go slow for a while. Until you get used to it.”

Lana grinned. “Good plan.”

After a few more minutes of struggling, they finally set off at a slow pace, Lana perched confidently on her Strider’s back. She had good balance, but Aloy decided to direct both of the machines to walk instead of run. She’d ease Lana into it.

“You know, you remind me of someone,” Lana remarked casually after an extended bout of silence.

“Yeah?” Aloy replied dryly. She knew where this was going.

“Yeah. She’s pretty famous.”

Aloy didn’t respond. She instead looked out over the hills and trees, always alert for threats. The machines had settled slightly from their Derangement after Hades’ demise, but some were still dangerous. They’d been built to be dangerous. And while with the destruction of Hollow Fort she’d eradicated the organized bandit threat, there were still small, roaming groups that now had a vendetta against her.

“The Savior of Meridian, the Doom of the Shadow Carja. The woman that destroyed a Great Devil.” Lana paused, letting the words sink between them. She peered closely at Aloy. “A Nora woman with hair like fire, and a spear that can control machines. Sound familiar?”

Aloy hummed. “Not ringing any bells. Sorry.”

Lana laughed. “So modest. So was it really a Devil? Or just an extra vicious machine?”

“It’s complicated.”

"We have time.”

Aloy glanced at her. “You’re the first person I’ve met that’s asked if it was a machine.”  
  
“I don’t really believe in the Nora or Carja religious mumbo jumbo—no offense. The sun is just the sun. Machines are just machines. And mountains are just mountains.”  
  
“None taken,” Aloy said, unable to keep the surprise out of her voice. “I don’t believe in any of it either.”  
  
“A Nora without faith? _That’s_ the most surprising thing I’ve heard in a while.”  
  
“I’m not really Nora,” Aloy admitted. It was getting easier to say. It no longer felt like Rost was rolling over in his grave at the words. “I was raised as an outcast. I didn’t become part of the tribe until I was 18.”  
  
“ _That_ sounds like quite the story.” Lana drew her Strider up right next to Aloy’s so they were side-by-side, legs nearly brushing. “I’d love to hear it.”

Aloy gripped her reigns tighter. Lana’s gaze was piercing and open. She seemed genuinely interested. “It’s…”  
  
“If you say it’s a long story or that it’s complicated, I’m going to kick you,” Lana said, grinning. “ _We have time._ Besides, with all the stuff you must’ve seen in the last couple years? I’d be a fool not to listen.”  
  
“What about you? What’s your story?” Aloy countered. She felt conflicted. It had been so long since she’d been able to talk to someone about everything— if she didn’t count herself or Rost’s grave. Which was… unbelievably sad.

“I’m not nearly as interesting.” Lana flapped a hand dismissively. “But if you really want to know I can tell you the whole dreary affair. _After_ you, of course.”  
  
“If you wait till I’m done, you’ll never get to tell me anything. So how about we take turns?”

“That long, huh? Maybe just the abridged version then.”

“Or we can take turns.”  
  
“Fine, fine. But you first. Beauty before age, as they say.”  
  
"Who says that?”  
  
“I do,” Lana said with another grin and a wink.

It wasn’t easy—talking about herself, that is—but she became more comfortable with it the longer she spoke. Lana was an active and engaged listener. She made noises and asked questions at all the right places. Aloy had only gotten as far as the start of the Proving when night began to fall.

She pulled her Strider short and cast around.  
  
“Is something wrong?” Lana asked, struggling to stop as smoothly. Her Strider kept walking for a few more paces until Aloy gave it the command to stop.  
  
“We need to find somewhere to sleep.”  
  
“Daytower is only a few more miles northwest. Why can’t we keep going?”  
  
“It’s more than a few miles,” Aloy said, dismounting. “Plus, we’ll end up breaking the Strider’s legs in a ditch if we try to travel at night.”  
  
“But— _beds_ ,” Lana said pitifully.

“We’ve got beds,” Aloy said. “Bed rolls.”  
  
“It’s not the same and you know it.” Lana sighed. “ _Fine.”_ She dismounted clumsily, landing hard on her left foot before tipping over sideways. Aloy only just managed to catch her before she hit the ground.  
  
Lana played it up, going limp and throwing a hand over her head as if faint. “My hero.”  
  
Aloy ignored the ridiculousness of it, and pulled Lana to her feet. “I’ll set a fire and cook us food if you set up the sleeping bags.”

“Deal,” Lana said with a grin.  
  
It took mere minutes for Aloy to kill a nearby turkey and fetch enough wood for a fire. By the time she’d made it back, Lana had finished meticulously placing the bedrolls. Directly next to each other. Touching, even.

Aloy rolled her eyes. “Are you afraid of the dark?”

“No. Why do you ask?”

“You have us set up awfully close there.”  
  
Lana looked up, grin back in full force. “Well, in case you wanted to _cuddle_ …”

“In your dreams.”  
  
“It would be much more than cuddling in my dreams, love.”  
  
Aloy turned away to start placing firewood, cheeks burning. Luckily it was dark enough out that there was no way Lana had noticed. A flirt. Lana was a giant flirt.

It reminded her of Petra, and of Vanasha.

Petra would have taken Aloy to bed if she could. Her flirting had been raw and uncomplicated. Vanasha’s had been one part her personality, one part manipulation, and one part flattery.  
  
Aloy wondered what Lana’s was, but the question mattered little outside of Aloy’s innate curiosity. Aloy had never been interested in anyone before. Not enough to flirt, anyway. She didn’t know what it was like, to want someone, outside of casual attraction. She found some people more attractive than others. But to want? That wasn’t in the cards for her, just like it hadn’t been for Elisabet. She had too much to do.

Tending the fire and cooking the bird was enough of a distraction to allow herself to settle. Lana didn’t attempt to make conversation. Instead she watched the turkey turning on the spit in silence.  
  
“So now you’ve heard all about my childhood,” Aloy lead. “What about yours? Couldn’t have been too great if you ran away.”  
  
“Depends on your definition of great,” Lana replied. “I was born the only child to one of the wealthiest Carja families. My parents owned most of the farms around Meridian. When Sun-King Avad killed his father and took the city, they pledged loyalty to him. Jumped ship immediately. They were smart people, my parents.” Lana paused for a moment, eyes unfocused on the flames. “They took advantage of the turmoil to buy up more land. Made trade deals with Sun-King Avad. Became the primary supplier of Carja crops. Eventually, they had enough money to hire others to oversee the farms and settled down on an estate near Sunstone. That’s where I grew up.”  
  
“That couldn’t have been more different from my upbringing.”  
  
Lana gave a short laugh. “No, it couldn’t have. People have always looked at my childhood and said, ‘How can you complain? You wanted for nothing!’ Running away, throwing it all away, was the ultimate selfish act. So I usually don’t talk about it.”

“Why did you run away?”  
  
“Those material goods came at a price. Every aspect of my life was controlled from the moment I could walk. When I ate, when I slept, how I spoke, how I dressed. And my parents? Their love was… distant. Conditional. They were often too busy to pay me any mind. But when they did? I was to be the perfect daughter. _Then_ they would love me.”

Aloy thought about Rost, and felt warmth light up her chest. For all the hardship of her childhood, Rost had loved her. Had cared for her. And she’d never had cause to doubt it. “That had to have been… really hard.”

“I was in denial for a long time. All children want their parents to love them, you know? They’re _supposed_ to love you, and if they don’t then what’s wrong with you? What kind of child are you if your own parents can’t love you?”  
  
“That’s not on you, that’s on them—”

“Thank you, Aloy,” Lana interrupted with a smile. “Don’t worry, I’ve long moved past that. I was just explaining. The final straw came when I hit sixteen. My parents decided it was finally time to invest me. They wanted to marry me off to another plantation owner. The man was far older. The same age as my father.”  
  
Aloy felt a familiar surge of anger and indignation wash over her. “That’s sick. How is that even _allowed_?”  
  
“Sun-King Avad has other things on his mind than the selling of women. He’s still trying to clean up the kingdom from his father.”  
  
“We’ll see about that,” Aloy murmured. She had a few choice things to say to Avad when she saw him next. And he’d better listen cause he owed her one, two, three—honestly, endlessly. He owed her endlessly.

“We’ll see about that?” Lana asked, eyebrow raised. “What, are you going to demand an audience with the Sun-King? Force him to enact new laws?”  
  
“Something like that,” Aloy replied. Lana laughed at Aloy, clearly disbelieving, but Aloy didn't bother to try and convince her. The turkey was finally done so she carefully removed the skewer from the fire. 

“Anyway, after I found out about the marriage, I ran. And that’s the whole dismal story of my childhood.”

Aloy ripped off a leg and handed it to Lana, who scarfed it down so fast that it seemed to pop out of existence.  
  
“Sorry, hungry,” Lana said, mouth full.

“Here, have more.” Aloy took the other leg and handed her the whole turkey. “How long were you in that cage?”  
  
Lana struggled to swallow. “Only a couple of days, but they were real stingy on the feeding. Bastards.”

“Well, if you need more I can get us more.”  
  
Lana shook her head vigorously, mouth once again full. “No, no—thif if good.”

“So if you ran when you were sixteen, you’ve been on your own for a while. What have you been up to all this time? And why are you going back now?”  
  
Lana shook her head again. “Ah, ah, ah. Taking turns, remember? You told me your childhood, I told you mine. Now it’s your turn.”  
  
Aloy rolled her eyes. Talk about being difficult. “Fine. Tomorrow then.”

Lana grinned. “It’s a date.”

The next day they were greeted by a heavy downpour of rain. It soaked through the bedrolls and through both Aloy and Lana in seconds.

Lana squirmed out of her sleeping bag faster than Aloy would have thought possible, and darted under a nearby tree swearing furiously.

Aloy felt similar annoyance at the waterlogged state of her clothing and hair, but she wasn’t going to show it. “What’s wrong? Never been rained on before?”  
  
Lana glared at Aloy, hugging the tree trunk close as if it would protect her. “It doesn’t mean I have to _like_ it!”

“Well, you’re going to have to deal with it. We need to get moving.”  
  
“We’re riding in this?”  
  
“Yes.”  
  
“But—“ Lana scrambled for an excuse. “What if the Striders get damaged? They’re machines. Technology doesn’t do well with water!”

“Oh, right,” Aloy drawled. “The Striders, machines that spend all of their time outside, might be damaged by water. Why didn’t I think of that?”

“You’re a smart ass.”  
  
“Come on. The faster we get to Daytower, the faster we’re out of the rain.” Aloy finished packing up her things quickly, and a grumbling Lana eventually joined her.

Aloy and Lana blew past Daytower and into Carja territory in under an hour. The guards there were very friendly to Aloy in a revering sort of way. They bowed and scraped like she was the Sun-King, and it made her as uncomfortable as being named the Nora’s Savior had.

Lana got a huge kick out of her discomfort. She laughed every time Aloy shied away from a bow or an overly enthusiastic greeting.

“I hate this,” Aloy muttered to herself when they had gotten halfway down the mountainside and into the desert. She only said it because she had forgotten that she had a companion.

Lana heard her. “There’s nothing wrong with letting yourself enjoy a little attention you know.”

“Not that kind of attention.”

Aloy expected Lana to tease her again, but to her surprise she just offered: “Well, it’s too late to stop it now. You’re too recognizable.”

Aloy thought on it for a minute. “It’s the hair, isn’t it?”

Lana grinned. “Yeah. It’s the hair.”

The next part of Aloy’s telling of her life story distracted the both of them away from her uneasiness. In a strange way, it helped Aloy calm down as she remembered the days when everyone had looked down upon her.

They had made it almost all the way to Morning’s Watch when they passed a woman, sobbing on the side of the road. A young child stood clutching bags beside her.

Aloy was off of her horse in a heartbeat. She crouched down next to the woman, touching her lightly on the shoulder. “Are you okay?”

And that was how Aloy ended up having to go off and fight two Rockbreakers.

Lana watched from the far, far away sidelines, shouting mostly encouragement. “You got this, Aloy! Aim for the eyes! Aim for the eyes! Dodge, dodge! Ooooooooh, ouch.”

“You’re not helping!” Aloy shouted at her, only just recovering from a boulder that flew into her face and wiped out her shield.

“I’m moral support! I’ll flash my tits if you win!”

Aloy tripped and nearly died as the Rockbreaker came barreling out of the ground.

“Not! Helping!” She yelled.

Eventually she succeeded. Exhausted, she stumbled over to where Lana waited. “Don’t,” she grumbled before Lana could speak. “Don’t flash me. I don’t want it.”

Lana smirked. “You sure? I’ve been told they’re real nice.”

“I’m sure,” Aloy said then backpedaled. “I’m sure that I don’t want to. See them, that is! Ugh, stop.”

Lana started full belly laughing half way through Aloy’s blubbering. “I’m just messing with you. You must be exhausted from the heroics. I’ll help search for the husband.”

They found the crying woman’s husband wedges into a small cave at the back of the quarry. He was hungry and thirsty, but unharmed.

Aloy watched the family heartfelt reunion with a smile. That, that was what made everything worth it. Protecting human life. She turned to go, but a hand wrapped around her bicep. Before she could react, she was dragged into the family’s group hug. They cried their thanks all over her while Lana watched nearby, arms crossed and smiling.

Finally, the sobbing group let her go. The father, who would later introduce himself as Oha, gripped Aloy by the shoulder. “Come with us. We have a place you can stay for the evening.”

“That’s really nice of you—“ Aloy began. “But—“

“Does it have real beds?” Lana called, blowing over Aloy. “Because if they have real beds, Aloy, we’re not turning them down.”

Aloy glared at Lana but didn’t argue when the family gleefully assured them that they had beds and food and everything they could want for a good night’s sleep.

Aloy had half a mind to say no just to piss Lana off. She didn’t, because she wasn’t ridiculous, but it was a tempting thought.

They abandoned the Striders, not wanting to panic anyone. Then they followed the family as they led them three miles east to the mountainside where Aloy had once bested Cauldron Rho. The memory made her grip her bow tight to her chest as they walked.

Oha, and his spouse Illia, did not seem to recognize Aloy, which was a blessing. They focused their attention mostly on her, plying her with questions and gratitude. Lana stayed uncharacteristically quiet. Aloy glanced back once to find her making weird faces and giggling with the little boy.

“So where’s your camp?” Aloy asked as they got closer and closer to the cliffs. “I’m familiar with the area— is this a new spot for your family? I’ve never seen any settlements out here.”

“Ah,” Oha chuckled. “It’s a bit complicated.”

“We live in a secret hideout!” The little boy exclaimed, busting into the conversation exuberantly and managing to tangle himself up in Aloy’s legs. Aloy tried not to trip over him and nearly fell in the process.

“A secret hideout?” Lana asked as she laughed at Aloy’s almost-tumble.

“It’s difficult to explain,” Illia said. “Due to the threat of bandits and machines, we’ve kept our settlement completely hidden from the outside world.” Seeing Aloy’s confusion, she continued, “We have no need to break that secret by trade or communication with other groups as we’re entirely self-sustained.”

Lana quickened her stride until she was walking next to Aloy, officially joining the group. “Why were you out traveling the roads then?”

“I have family in Meridian,” Illia replied. “We wanted Malik to meet them, and we figured he was finally old enough to travel.”

The little boy giggled and ran into his mother’s arms.

“And nobody has ever stumbled upon your camp?” Aloy glanced at Lana, trying to gauge her reaction. A secret settlement? Completely hidden? Lana’s face gave nothing away. She noticed Aloy looking and smiled as if she had a secret herself.

“It would be difficult to do so. You’ll see. Stop here.” Oha threw out an arm, stopping the group in its tracks. Then he cupped his hand over his mouth and trilled a bird call once, twice, three times before pausing.

Another bird call answered after a pause.

Oha changed the position of his hands and blew another call, this one a lower pitch.

For a long moment nothing happened. Then there was a rumble, the ground shaking. Aloy activated her Focus on reflex, drawing her bow.

In front of her, the Focus showed a bunker door. The gears within the structure shifted, and a small gap in the cave wall opened wider as the stone was drawn apart.

Lana gaped at it. Aloy was also surprised, but not by the existence of an Old Ones bunker— she’d been in far too many by now to ever be surprised by that. She’d never seen one with a door camouflaged into the rock like this. She wondered what that could mean for the facility inside. And for the people who had somehow managed to live in it.

Oha swept his arm out with a bow. “Welcome to our home! Mordor!”

“That sounds kind of... foreboding,” Aloy muttered as the family began to pull her inside.

“It is the word carved on the main doors. And thus, how it got its name. Welcome... to Mordor.” The speaker was male, with a deep, soothing voice. He appeared a minute later in the bunker doorway. A dark man with gray hair and kind eyes, he held his arms open. “Oha, Illia, Malik. You’ve returned to us safely. And brought guests.”

His final statement wasn’t entirely welcoming, which Aloy figured wasn’t surprising if they were trying to keep themselves secret.

Oha didn’t seem deterred by it however. He grabbed Aloy by the shoulders and thrust her forward. “This is Aloy. She saved me from certain death by defeating a pair of Rockbreakers that had trapped me in the canyon north of here. I offered her a roof over her head for the evening in repayment.”

“A roof does not seem a suitable payment for a life debt. From Rockbreakers no less.” The man smiled. “But I am happy to give it. Welcome, Aloy. I am Kerchak.”

“Hello,” Aloy said, trying to stop Oha from pushing her forward even more like some sort of peace offering. “We didn’t mean to make any trouble. We can leave—“

“Hi, I’m Lana,” Lana interrupted, sliding out in front of Aloy and tugging Oha away from her in one fell swoop. “I’m a friend of Aloy’s.”

“A friend of Aloy’s is a friend of ours, of course.” Kerchak looked her up and down with a smile. “Come in. Come in, both of you. I wish to hear how you saved Oha’s life.”

Oha and Illia told the story as Kerchak led them into the bunker. They exaggerated a lot of it. Suddenly instead of two Rockbreakers, there were ten. Then they were _infected_ Rockbreakers. Aloy had somehow bested them all with a single shot of her bow.

Aloy protested, trying to keep them on track, but Lana fanned the flames by spurring them on with even greater lies.

“And then, the Thunderjaw showed up—“

“There was no Thunderjaw,” Aloy said, exasperated.

Lana grinned. “I could’ve sworn—“

“No.”

Kerchak laughed. “It seems you’re a woman of remarkable talent.”

“She’s a mechanical genius as well,” Lana butted in. “Understands tech better than anyone I’ve ever seen.”

Kerchak gave Aloy a considering look. “Is that so?”

“I’m pretty good.”

“I hate to ask more of you after all you did to save Oha, but maybe you can help us then.”

“Help you with what?”

“We’ve been having some issues... but I won’t speak of them now. You’ve had a long day. If it’s okay with you, I can find you in the morning?”

Aloy sighed. There went any chance of leaving easily. “Of course.”

Kerchak waved Oha and his family off at a doorway a ways down the sloping hallway into the bunker. “That’s where the family housing units are,” he explained to them. “Your rooms are a little further down.”

Men and women wearing a mixture of Carja and Oseram clothing passed them in the halls. Many cried out greeting to Kerchak, but they didn’t extend the same courtesy to Aloy and Lana. Instead they eyed them warily.  
  
“You guys don’t get many guests, do you,” Aloy commented, unphased by the lack of welcome. In fact, it was far more comfortable than their entrance to Daytower. She tried not to think about how pitiful that was.

Kerchak shook his head. “No. We chose to hide ourselves a while ago. The world is a violent, dangerous place. Living here has been far simpler. Safer, too.”

“Illia said you were self-sustaining?”  
  
“Thanks to what the Old Ones left behind.” Kerchak gestured all around him. “With some work, we managed to figure out how to use it. Well, some of it. There are hydroponic farms located at the center of Mordor. Heating and cooling systems. Waste-removal systems. As if we were meant to be housed here.”  
  
“That sounds amazing.” Aloy suddenly found that she no longer felt as sore about staying till the morning. She wanted to explore all of the new technology left behind in this place.

Kerchak led them to another set of housing units, these a mixed combination of singles and doubles. The room he gave them had obviously lacked occupants since this area in Mordor had been repurposed for sleep, dust a heavy layer on the walls, floor, and beds.

Lana sneezed.

Kerchak smiled ruefully. “Sorry for the dirt. We’ve never had reason to clean here. I’ll bring a broom by later.”  
  
They said their goodnights, and then it was just Aloy and Lana.

Lana ripped the blankets off her bed and shook them violently, forcing a cloud of dust into the air. Aloy choked on it, hacking into her arm.

“Sorry,” Lana said. “But I can’t sleep in filth.”  
  
“You’re the one who wanted beds.” Aloy shook her blankets out as well, although far more gently and into the corner so it wouldn’t fill the room.

“Do you really prefer a floor?”  
  
“It’s what I’m used to.”  
  
Lana threw herself down on the bed on her belly, propping her head on her hands to peer at Aloy. “How long have you been camping for?”  
  
“For as long as the Proving. I’ve slept on actual beds… twice since then.”  
  
“Twice?” Lana looked horrified. “That’s ghastly.”  
  
“Says the girl who I found caged in a bandit camp.”  
  
“I’ll have you know I always slept on beds before that, thank you.”  
  
“Spoiled,” Aloy chuckled, carefully sitting down on her own bunk.  
  
“I don’t know if that counts as spoiled, or if you’ve just had a horrible upbringing.”  
  
“Why not both?”  
  
Lana’s eyes were trained on her, riveted, and it almost was enough to make Aloy uncomfortable. “Tell me about Rost.”  
  
“You still haven’t told me about yourself—”  
  
“And I will. Let’s not make this back and forth tonight. I want to know you.”  
  
Rost was, in some ways, still a sore subject to Aloy despite all the time that had passed since his death. Had she ever talked to anyone about him besides Teersa? How could she possibly explain? But the darkness of the room and her exhaustion made honesty easier. “I was made outcast at birth. They found me at the foot of All-Mother, believed me to be a demon, and gave me to Rost. He was another outcast. He named me, and raised me.”  
  
“Your father, then.”  
  
“We never gave each other such terms.” It had never seemed important. Not until he was gone. “He was determined to make sure I’d be able to survive without the tribe, so my life became devoted to training. How to track and hunt animals, how to use all weapons, how to kill machines. He’s the reason I’m alive…” Aloy trailed off. “He sacrificed himself, at the Proving, to save me from the Shadow Carja. His last words to me were ‘survive.’” Aloy let out a bitter laugh and wiped her eyes. “Classic Rost.”  
She’d never even had the chance to grieve. Her life had taken too many turns, been too hectic for her to give him anything besides her sporadic visits to his grave. “You know the craziest thing? My strongest memory of him is the time he tripped over a squirrel. Just mid-sentence. Trying to teach me to hunt. And he goes head over heel—because of a squirrel too stupid to even hide.” 

Lana crossed the room, and sat next to Aloy. Carefully, she reached out to rest her hand on Aloy’s shoulder. “He loved you. Very much.”

Aloy wiped her eyes one more time. “Yeah. He did.”   
  
“Did you ever find your mother?”  
  
“Yes.” Aloy had lost all of her parents before she’d even had the chance to acknowledge them as such. Rost, Elisabet, GAIA. Each a punch in the gut, a destruction she hadn’t known was coming. As Sylens had said, produced by woman and machine.

Raised by man.  
  
“Is she…?”  
  
“She died. A long time ago.”  
  
Lana’s hand gently trailed down Aloy’s arm until it reached Aloy’s own. Aloy hesitated for a moment before turning her palm upward so Lana could clasp it. Then they were holding hands, something Aloy had never experienced with another person. Lana ran her thumb back and forth along Aloy’s skin. “I’m so sorry.”  
  
“It’s okay,” Aloy lied. She tried to smile. “It’s hard to mourn something you’ve never had.”  
  
“No, it’s not.” Lana gripped her hand tighter. “I’ve only ever mourned for the things I’ve never had.”

They sat like that, grasping at each other in the dark, until Lana finally retreated back to her own bed. Then they slept.  
  
Aloy woke before Lana and slipped from the room. She felt discomfited, off-kilter, unsure of how to act around the woman now. To keep from thinking about it, she moved with purpose, hoping to find Oha and his family. Familiar, friendly faces. She examined the corridors carefully, using her Focus to try and divine what this place had been. She failed. Whatever machinery was being operated was outside of her range.  
  
Eventually she stumbled upon a mess hall. A sizeable crowd of people gathered there, all of different ages and tribal wear. Kerchak sat at a table to the far right, surrounded by a group of older men and women.  
  
Aloy had never been inconspicuous, and that continued now when her appearance captured the attention of the entire gathering. There was a sustained beat of silence before they turned back to their food. Most of the children continued to stare, point, and whisper.

“Aloy!” Kerchak called, waving. “Come, treat with me!” The man was wearing an elaborate headpiece of neither Carja or Oseram design. On closer examination, it seemed to be part of a Sawtooth head. He wore a simple jacket, open to bare his chest, and loose pants. The fanciness of his headdress combined with the plainness of his outfit stood out to Aloy, but she shook to the thought away for later. Likely, it was meant to signify his importance to this strange, hidden tribe.  
  
Food sat on a long table in the corner. She gratefully accepted a plate handed to her by a woman near the head of it, and then made her way to Kerchak.  
He steered her onto the bench right beside him, hand heavy on her back. “Aloy, meet my headsmen. Jaq, Sopha, Urir, Cyan, and Maise. Headsmen, meet Aloy. She’s the one who saved Oha from the Rockbreakers, and, hopefully, she’s going to be helping Ruck with the machinery repairs.”  
  
“Machinery repairs?” Aloy asked while the headsmen murmured greetings.

“Yes. Though, I’d rather discuss elsewhere after you’ve eaten.”

Aloy took the hint and finished her food quickly. Kerchak collected her plate and deposited back to the women who had given it before leading Aloy out of the mess hall and down a new network of hallways.  
  
“We’ve been living in this facility for close to 17 years. We found it while fleeing the Red Raids.” He gestured around himself. “Luckily, some of our number are Oseram. They managed to get this place up and running enough to provide for us all. A hydroponics farms, hydroelectric generators, air recyclers, the works.”  
  
Each word only served to pique Aloy’s interest even more. “So it was originally built to house people?”  
  
“Perhaps, but I doubt that it was it’s only purpose. I’m no Oseram, but there’s far more to this place then what’s needed to power the life-critical functions.”  
  
“So what do you need me for?”  
  
“The whole system’s malfunctioning. Has been for three weeks now. Our food stores are fine, but I’m worried about our backup power. Whatever’s happening is affecting all I mentioned before. My son, Ruck, trained under the Oseram engineers ever since we first arrived here. He’s the best we’ve got, and he can’t make heads or tails of it.”  
  
“You want me to figure it out?”  
  
“For anything we have to give in return. We would be eternally grateful.”

“You don’t have to give me anything.” Without her help, they’d no longer be able to live here. They’d be in danger. “I’m happy to assist.”

Kerchak beamed. “You’re a miracle, Aloy. An answer to our prayers.”  
  
It was close enough to Nora rhetoric to make Aloy uncomfortable. “I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.”

Kerchak clapped her on the back, and lead her further down into Mordor. It wasn’t much longer before they reached a much larger and more impressive doorway. The door was open, but Aloy could see thick metal locks on each side. Originally meant to keep people out then. An important room indeed.

“I’m excited for you to meet Ruck,” Kerchak said, entering first. “I think you two will have much in common. Ruck! Come meet Aloy!”  
  
Aloy barely paid attention to his words, too busy examining the massive and extremely sophisticated control room. Because that’s what it was. A control room. She tapped her Focus and spun on one heel, taking in all the information the device spat at her in rapid time. Like Kerchak had said, this room connected to the hydroponic farms, generators, and air recyclers. But there was more. A big fat CLASSIFIED appeared as she looked downwards, trying to follow the electrical lines down deeper into the ground.  
  
That wasn’t a good sign. Usually CLASSIFIED in Old Ones/Focus speak meant military instillation. _Or it could be GAIA facility,_ another part of her thought hopefully. It never worked out that way though. Wherever GAIA’s subfunctions were, she hadn’t been able to find them yet.

“Aloy, this is my son Ruck.”  
  
Aloy was shaken out of her observations as Kerchak very helpfully shoved his son directly in front of her.  
  
Ruck was a tall man, with his father’s dark skin and dark hair. His outfit was far fancier than his father’s though, with swirling, colored fabric. Carja wear, but on his forehead was Oseram headgear. He looked distinctly unhappy to see her. “I’m Ruck.”  
  
“Aloy,” she replied, taking a step back so he would no longer be so close.  
  
“And I’m Lana!” Lana’s appearance came as a shock to everyone in the room, though she sauntered in like she owned it. “I had to ask around everywhere to find you.” This she directed at Aloy. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”  
  
“Didn’t want to part you with your precious bed so soon,” Aloy lied.  
  
Lana grinned. “Fair point.”  
  
“Glad you could join us, Lana.” Kerchak welcomed her as warmly as he had Aloy. “Are you by chance an engineer as well?”  
  
“No, just built-in entertainment and conversation-maker.”  
  
This seemed to throw Kerchak, but he recovered admirably. “Perfect. You can keep them from getting too bored.” He turned to his son. “Ruck, Aloy is here to help you find and fix whatever’s causing all of our stuff to malfunction. Make her feel welcomed. I trust with the two of you everything will be solved in no time.”  
  
“Of course,” Ruck said quietly.  
  
Aloy nodded. “Glad to help.”

“Wonderful.” Kerchak gave them all a wide smile. “I’ll leave you to it then.”  
  
Kerchak’s departure sucked all of the warmth out of the room as effectively as a Banuk winter. Ruck’s expression soured, apparently no longer forced to maintain its politeness. “What help can some Nora girl offer me?”

It was all too familiar to Aloy. “Considering it’s been three weeks and you still haven’t fixed it, I’d say you don’t have the right to refuse me.”  
  
“And what could a savage possibly know about Old Ones tech?”  
  
“More than you.” Aloy replied, meeting his eyes. “I don’t have time to assuage your wounded pride. I’m here to fix your problem. Now let me do it.”  
  
Ruck snarled. “You won’t manage to fix anything.”

“Hey, Aloy, what’s this?” Lana’s innocent question cut through the tension like an arrow through cloth. She was pointing at a mass of wires on the wall. The panel previously covering them had been taken away.  
  
“That’s the wiring hub,” Aloy replied automatically, thrown by the redirection. Ruck seemed to feel the same. He stared blankly at Lana without comment, mouth slightly open. 

“And this?” Lana pointed again.  
  
“Power converter for the hydroponics.”  
  
“What’re hydroponics?”  
  
“Old Ones tech that lets plants grow indoors.”  
  
“Oh, my parents would’ve loved to know that one.” Lana glanced at Ruck with a smile. “Sorry. I’m not an Old Ones expert. I’m just a tag-along.”  
  
Ruck regained his bearings and scowled at Aloy. “I won’t help you.”  
  
“I don’t need it.” Aloy activated her Focus, this time more pointedly searching for the problem. It only took a few seconds to establish it was a power issue. How angry would Ruck be if she solved in three minutes what he couldn’t in three weeks? “Where’s your hydroelectric generator?”  
  
“Why do you care?”  
  
“You can choose not to answer. I’ll find it regardless.”  
  
“I’ve already checked the hydroelectric generator. It’s functioning perfectly.”  
  
“Well, for something ‘functioning perfectly’ it’s somehow not getting sufficient power to this room.”

“You—"  
  
“Hey, Aloy.”

Once again, Lana stopped the escalating fight in its tracks. Aloy wondered. “Yeah?”  
  
“What’s this?”  
  
“That’s an input console.”  
  
“What do you input?”  
  
“Well, most likely commands, but probably code, too—”  
  
“Enough!” Ruck cut through the conversation angrily. “Just—follow me.”  
  
Without another word he strode through the leftmost set of doors.

Lana grinned at Aloy. “Better follow him before he changes his mind.”  
  
“Since when have you had such an interest in tech?”  
  
“Oh, since always,” Lana replied flippantly. “Now go.”  
  
Aloy couldn’t help but smile as she followed after Ruck. Clever. Lana was very clever, if not exactly subtle.

“Here.” Ruck punched a button in the center of door angrily as Aloy approached. “Have at it.”  
  
“Thanks.” Aloy stepped into a small, rectangular room. A glass windowpane took up the whole of the far wall. Light shone out into what looked like a massive cavern. She approached the glass, pressing her hands onto it as she peered down in awe. “An underground river?”

“Yeah. It’s the reason this whole facility was built here. It’s a cave network.”  
  
Aloy glanced at Ruck, surprised he’d offered the information for free. He refused to look at her, but he didn’t leave the room either.

“Sun’s tits,” Lana whispered, pressing up against the glass next to Aloy. “That’s incredible.”  
  
Aloy snorted. “Sun’s tits?”  
  
“What, offended?”

“No, of course not. I’ve just never heard that one before. I thought the sun was male.”

“Oh, right, of course, cause the Carja refuse to worship anything without a dick—"  
  
“ _There’s an access ladder_ to get to the turbines,” Ruck interrupted, looking annoyed. “You can take it and check over whatever you think I’ve missed. But I haven’t missed anything.” The last part he sneered, reverting from being helpful so quickly Aloy wondered if she’d hallucinated it. Cave mushrooms, maybe.

With the Focus, Aloy saw that she’d have to climb down at least two stories to reach the large chunk of machinery directly operating the turbines. Luckily, there was a ladder. “I’ll be back. _Don’t_ climb down after me.”  
  
Lana shook her head. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

The descent took little time, but Aloy’s assessment and fixing of the turbine control quickly became far more complicated than she had expected. What she’d assumed was a hardware problem was actually a software problem. The turbine power allocation was controlled by a tricky set of code. The code had apparently malfunctioned, causing a bulk of the power needed for life-support to be diverted to resources considered CLASSIFIED. One 0 miscalculating to a 1 was all it had took. Aloy wondered at how such a thing could have happened and set about to fixing it.

As with most debugging, it took a while. By the end, she was shivering violently from the cave’s damp, cool air, and nearly deaf from the roar of the river.

When she finally returned back to the control room, only Ruck remained, bent over the command console.  
  
“Is it fixed?” Aloy called out to him.

He didn’t acknowledge her, and she took that as all the answer she needed. A tap of her Focus confirmed it. Power was flowing without problem to all life-critical functions. Job complete.

Aloy made her way back through the complex, exchanging short greetings with passerbys who were seemingly warming up to her presence in their group. One of the Headsmen, an older woman who Aloy remembered had been named as Maise, pointed her down a far corridor when Aloy asked after Kerchak. She eventually found him surrounded by a bunch of Oseram.

He reacted joyously to her news, swinging her up in a bear hug that she did not enjoy receiving but accepted anyway. “This is wonderful!” he boomed. “We will have our dinner tonight in your honor!”  
  
“Uh—”  
  
“Don’t object! It is already late. Stay one more night, celebrate, and we will send you off in the morning with provisions!”  
  
“Of course,” Aloy chuckled breathlessly as she was released. “We’ll stay.”  
  
Aloy, as per her nature, was itching to discover what lay at the bowels of the facility. Something lurked here, something important, but she had other business first to take care of. She needed to finish escorting Lana. Then she could return. If Kerchak would let her. She resolved to ask him later, in private, while he was still feeling so indebted to her.  
  
The Oseram, who must’ve been his other engineers, clapped her on the back in turn, celebrating with Kerchak. Many of them had questions for her, asking her for detailed feedback on what was wrong and how she’d fixed it. Despite being exhausted, she felt compelled to answer. She understood their curiosity. She was the same way.  
  
She left out her Focus though. It wasn’t worth explaining.  
  
The merriment eventually did die down, and she got the chance to ask Kerchak a question that had been on her mind since ascending from the underground river. “Where’s Lana?”  
  
Kerchak smiled. “She’s with the children! Come, I’ll show you.”  
  
The children’s teaching room was a splash of color in an otherwise grey, metal living space. Paint covered the walls, the floors, the chairs, the _children._ And Lana was in the middle of it, giggling, with a paintbrush and a child sprawled at every side.

Aloy stood for long moments unnoticed, watching her interact with the children and the other adults.

Aloy had only known Lana for two days, but it had been enough to nail down some basic parts of her personality. Lana was always grinning, always joking, never serious. But the smile she had on her face now? Entirely different. If Aloy had to place it, she’d say it was with true affection. A smile not intended to be anything other than honest. She wondered what that meant about so much of Lana’s other behavior. Was Lana ever truly happy?  
  
She would’ve been content to observe for a while longer, but Lana glanced up and spotted her in the doorway.  
  
“Aloy!” Her soft smile brightened back to her regular mischievous grin. “You fixed it?”  
  
“Yeah. All fixed.” Aloy entered the room, nodding her head to the other men and women who watched her warily around the children. Teachers, perhaps. Or parents.

Suddenly she was tackled from the front by a small child. “Aloy!” It was Malik, grinning from ear to ear. “Hi!”

“Uh, hi!” Aloy replied, unsure of how to proceed. She’d never really interacted with children before. She felt like a fish out of water. It frustrated her. How difficult could it be? They were just tiny people. “How are you?”  
  
“Good!” Every word was nothing short of exuberant. “Lana’s been teaching us how to paint pictures! It’s fun!”  
  
“That’s great,” Aloy said, carefully peeling him from her legs. He detached and rushed over to the other children, babbling excitedly about how Aloy had singlehandedly defeated ‘ _the hugest, gigantic-est, evilest machines’_ and saved his father. The kids paying him attention ooh’d and ahh’d, but didn’t approach Aloy, shyly hiding behind each other.

Lana watched the whole thing without helping at all. Aloy decided it was safest to direct her attention to her, and let the kids do what they wanted. “So you paint?”

“Didn’t you know?” Lana asked dramatically, placing her hand against her head and inadvertently getting bright yellow all over it. “Every Carja noblewoman _must_ practice the arts. How else would they entertain their husbands?”  
  
Aloy felt her face wrinkle in automatic and uncontrollable disdain. “Are you serious?”  
  
Lana laughed at her expression. “Yes. The Carja value the arts, and noblewoman are naught but the objects that can produce them. _Luckily_ , I actually enjoyed drawing and painting so I focused on those. I haven’t gotten to practice in… a long time.” The last part she said gently, as if she were far away in her own thoughts.  
  
Aloy decided to distract her. It was a horrible subject, and a bit too heavy for childcare. “What’re you painting?”

“Well, I _was_ painting a field of flowers.” She looked down to survey the mess on the floor. “The children wanted to help. How could I say no?”  
  
“It looks… great,” Aloy said after a pause. At Lana’s look, she continued, “No, really! The part I can see where you painted is really impressive.” There was a single square of vibrant hues untouched by globs of paint. Aloy could make out the gentle shapes and shades of tiny flowers.  
  
“Thank you,” Lana said softly. Her expression grew more serious as she surveyed her work. “I think I’m going to ask if they have paper. It’s unlikely, but I’d like to draw again.”  
  
“You should,” Aloy encouraged, feeling a bit more on steady ground. “I think you’d do great.”  
  
Lana studied her for a moment. Then the familiar teasing grin slipped back on her face. “And you would be a good judge?”  
  
“Better than children, I hope.”  
  
Lana laughed, and it was a real one. 

The other caretakers directed them towards the communal adult showers once Lana declared herself finished with teaching, pointedly focusing on Lana’s paint-covered everything and Aloy’s smattering of dirt and rock dust in turn. Aloy hadn’t even thought about how filthy she’d become during her repairs, but her clothing was a sight to behold. Damp and covered in black sediment.

Aloy, unused to the concept of communal bathing, hesitated to strip despite only her and Lana occupying the ‘bathroom’. It took Lana’s urging for her to disrobe down to her wrappings, but that she refused to remove. Lana had no such qualms. She tossed off _all_ of her clothing with glee, charging directly into the hot water with much joy and sighing. Aloy refused to look at her, choosing a different spigot across to the room to clean herself under. To add to the discomfort, sinks and mirrors lined the wall next to her. Every time she glanced to the left, she could see her and Lana’s reflections glaring back at her. She stopped looking left.

Aloy was forced to clean her clothing next. They were too dirty to be salvageable with a little bit of air beating. It left her in a predicament however, where she had to consider either walking back to their rooms and bags in nothing but her wet wrappings… or to wear her wet clothes.

Which she’d done before and didn’t prefer.

“I can go grab our clean stuff. Should’ve thought of that before, but I was too excited!” Lana declared as if she’d read Aloy’s mind. She threw back on her paint-covered clothing without issue. “I’ll be right back.”  
  
She then left Aloy alone and wet, staring at her now-clean and just-as-wet clothing.

Aloy fidgeted. She hoped no one else would come to bathe. With little to do, she resorted to fixing some of her braids in the mirror, combing and knotting back her hair for the first time in ages. Mirrors weren’t common in the Embrace. The only things available to gaze at yourself upon were often clean metal or the surface of calm water.

For a moment, the crystal-clear reflection of her face made her pause. It was like Elisabet was looking right back out at her.

Aloy stared, wishing, not for the first time, that Elisabet were here. With her. Helping her.

Wishing, for a time among countless times, that Elisabet could’ve seen the world she’d left behind. That she could’ve known her efforts were not in vain. That she could’ve met all the people she had saved. 

“From the mind of a single, long vine

one hundred opening lives,” Aloy whispered. Her speech broke the illusion, and she saw only herself in the mirror. Alone, again.

“What is that?”  
  
Aloy jerked to see Lana peering quizzically at her, a bundle of fabric under her arms. “What?”  
  
“What was that you just said? …What’s wrong? Why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?”  
  
Because she had _._ “It was a poem.”

“A poem? Not one I’ve ever heard before. I didn’t think the Nora had poetry.”  
  
“It isn’t Nora. It’s an Old Ones’ poem,” Aloy admitted, turning away to examine the faucet.  
  
Lana carefully placed Aloy’s spare outfit next to her on the edge of the sink. “Where did you find Old Ones’ poetry?”

And Aloy, tired of censoring the truth, answered, “I found poetry in metal flowers created by a dead machine.”

Lana fell silent. Aloy was tempted to look, to see her face. Then Lana asked, “Can you tell it to me again?”  
  
Aloy repeated the poem, grieving both Elisabet and GAIA so intensely and so suddenly that she almost choked over the words.

Lana gently placed her hand on Aloy’s arm. “Is that… one of your favorites?”  
  
“It reminds me of someone.” Aloy pulled away, grabbing her clothing as she went. “Thank you for getting these for me.”  
  
Like the night before, it was too much. Aloy couldn’t bear to speak of it more so she very noticeably changed the subject. She hoped that Lana wouldn’t try to pursue it further. “Are you not going to change?” she asked, glancing at Lana.  
  
“I already have.” Lana gestured to her now paint-free clothing. “I didn’t bother to wash my other set because the paint wouldn’t come off anyway.”  
  
“Sorry about that.”  
  
“It’s okay. It adds character _._ ”  
  
“You’re good with children.”  
  
Lana paused, caught off guard. “Why do you say that?”  
  
“You—”  
  
“Aloy?” A stranger called from the bathroom door. “Are you finished washing? Kerchak wants you and Lana to join us in the mess hall.”  
  
“Oh no,” Aloy murmured.  
  
“What?”  
  
“He wants to celebrate.”  
  
“Celebrate?”  
  
“ _Me.”  
_  
Lana laughed all the way to the mess hall. Every time her fit died down, glancing at Aloy’s face made it erupt all over again. It was enough to have Aloy smiling grudgingly as they made their grand entrance and the room erupted into cheers.

\---

  
  


Being back on the road, no longer confined to the underground corridors of Mordor, felt wonderful. Aloy didn’t even try to call for Striders, instead racing ahead on her own feet and doubling back when she got too far from Lana. It felt so good to run.

“You look happy,” Lana commented. “Feeling the wind in your sails?”  
  
“I don’t do well cooped up.”

“I can see that.”  
  
Aloy half expected Lana to once again initiate their back and forth of information giving, but she stayed unusually taciturn. When her weird behavior stretched out into their third day of travelling South, Aloy resolved to question her about it.

Instead, she got sidetracked by a group of hunters ambushed by a pack of machines. She managed to save them, and once again they were invited in for the evening.  
  
Aloy accepted for Lana’s benefit, though Lana didn’t give her opinion one way or the other. She knew Lana would appreciate the beds.

“You really do help everyone, don’t you,” Lana commented softly as they followed the hunters to their encampment.

Aloy shrugged. “I try.”

“Why? What do you get out of it?”  
  
Aloy frowned at Lana. “What do you mean?”  
  
“You don’t do it for the reward. If you did, you’d be far wealthier. You just drop _everything_ to help whoever is in need. I just… I’ve wandered for a long time and never seen anything like it. Anyone like you.”  
  
“I don’t work for free.”

“Yes, you totally do.”

“Okay, I don’t work for free when people would pay a regular person to do it. I’m not naïve.”

“You sure seem like it.”

Aloy was almost offended, but then she noticed how troubled Lana looked. As if she truly didn’t understand. So Aloy tried her best to search for an explanation. She’d met people who had asked her the same thing before, and ‘I like to help people’ usually didn’t cut it.

Finally, her mind settled on something dear to her heart. “’You have to care. Being smart will count for nothing if you don’t make the world better. You have to use your abilities to count for something, to serve life, not death.’”  
  
Lana laughed wryly. “How poetic.”  
  
“I’ve always wanted to help people. I hate seeing them suffer or struggle. I can’t sit by and do nothing.” Aloy paused, a lump in her throat. “But my… mom left that message for me. And finding it really solidified what I was doing. Repeating it to myself when things get hard… It helps.”  
  
Lana stared at her, and Aloy had to stop herself from fidgeting at the scrutiny. Then Lana smiled. “That’s really admirable, Aloy. You’re a Sun-blessed hero.”

Aloy responded automatically. “Ew, don’t. Please.”  
  
“Don’t like the savior shtick?”  
  
“No. Not at all.”

“You’re going to have to get used to it. You deserve it, oh Anointed One.”  
  
“Lana, stop.”  
  
Lana laughed. “Okay, okay. I’ll try to save my worship for later.” Then she winked, and Aloy felt that all was right between them again.

“So you like kids?”  
  
“You’re still on that? And you’re bringing it up now?”  
  
“I’m just curious.”  
  
“They’re cute.” Lana shrugged. Aloy waited for the follow-up. It took a while. “I used to watch the kids of other merchant families. We got on well.”  
  
“I can see it. It’s cute.”  
  
“I can do far more than just _cute.”_

“You haven’t been around any children since then?”  
  
Lana’s smile fell when she realized how deftly Aloy had ignored her flirting. “No. I could’ve found nanny work in Meridian, but then my parents would have found _me_. I had to run.”  
  
“Why _are_ you going back?”  
  
It took Lana so long to answer, Aloy thought she wouldn’t. When Lana spoke, she was very quiet. “Is it too cliché to say I have regrets?”  
  
“Of course not.”  
  
“I’m hoping I can put some things right.”  
  
“Even though they put out the bounty?”  
  
“Even with the bounty. Which is going to you, of course.”  
  
Aloy shook her head. “I don’t want it.”  
  
Lana sighed. “You really are a saint, Aloy.”

They were welcomed into the village with open arms, treated to a lovely hot dinner, and sent to bed. This pattern repeated itself over the next couple days as Aloy stopped again and again to help strangers in need.  
  
She felt compelled to apologize for it during a hunt for Stalker parts that a young inventor they’d met on the road needed. “I’m sorry this is taking so long.”

“I don’t mind the sightseeing.” Lana very pointedly looked Aloy up and down, and that was the last time Aloy apologized for anything.

They delivered the parts back to the girl, having to backtrack to the outskirts of Meridian Estates to do so.

“We should be able to make it to Sunstone tomorrow,” Aloy said, surveying the magnificent sunset against the desert backdrop. Ironically, Meridian really did have some of the best views for the sun.  
  
“Unless you get sidetracked again.”

“Even then, I think we’ll make it.”  
  
“Yeah.”

Aloy glanced at Lana, picking up on the change in tone immediately. “Are you okay?”

Lana wouldn’t look at her, staring resolutely out over the fields. “I’m fine.”  
  
“Nervous?”  
  
Lana let out a short laugh. “Something like that.”  
  
Aloy felt bad for her. “It’ll be okay, Lana. Everything will work out. And if for some reason they act like jerks, I can just take you somewhere else.”  
  
“What an offer. More travel time with you? Don’t tempt me to give up on reconciliation now.”  
  
“You’ve hated traveling with me.”

“That’s not true!”  
  
“Let’s see. You’ve had to deal with the hard ground, constant exhausting trips to save people, the overflowing goodness of my naïve heart, the hard ground. Am I missing something?”  
  
“You might’ve missed the hard ground.”  
  
“Ah, yes. Of course.”  
  
Lana laughed, wiping her eyes. “Aloy, I really have enjoyed this. It’s been… good for me.”  
  
Aloy smiled. “Good.”

They found a place to board in a nice tavern nearby. Aloy shrunk away from the counter, worried that she’d be recognized and then news would spread and then Avad would call for an audience and then she’d have to delay Lana _even_ _more._

If the innkeep recognized her, he said nothing of it. However, he did offer one of his nicer rooms at reduced cost. Double beds, screen and tub in the corner for bathing.

“This is wonderful,” Lana declared, collapsing on the bed next to the window. “Clean. High quality.”  
  
“Your aristocracy is showing.”  
  
“I can enjoy the finer things in life without being an aristocrat, thank you.”  
  
“Says you.”  
  
“You don’t count as a good judge of these things.”  
  
After settling in, they headed back downstairs to order actual meals. The common room was packed with people socializing, laughing, drinking.

Lana soaked it all in with a serene smile. “We should get drinks.”  
  
“Drinks?”  
  
“Yeah, to celebrate. You brought me all the way here. Without a scratch, I might add.”  
  
“I don’t really drink.”  
  
“More for me then!”

Lana left to order at the counter, and Aloy watched her go, studying the way she walked, and how her clothes fell on her shoulders, and how she interacted with the innkeep, infallible smile still in place. And Aloy was forced to admit that she was sad to be parting with Lana tomorrow.

They’d known each other for a little more than a week, but it had been _nice_ traveling with someone. It had been nice having someone to talk to in the evenings when Aloy could no longer distract herself with work. It had been nice to be able to have someone to share things with.  
  
No, Aloy hadn’t been able to tell everything. She never would. But for once, she hadn’t been alone.

She wondered if she really should get a drink. Oblige Lana, enjoy this last night. She pushed her food around on her plate as she considered it.

“Why the long face?” Lana placed her tankard down with a loud tap on the wooden table. “Already missing me?”

Aloy smiled. Lana had pretty much nailed it in one go. “Something like that.”

“Don’t say nice things like that to me. Makes me blush.”

“You’ve literally never blushed.”

“You never know. My complexion makes it hard to tell.”

Aloy rolled her eyes and made the decision not to get a drink. Lana was difficult enough to handle while sober.

The tavern grew rowdier as the evening went on, and Aloy and Lana were inevitably drawn into the festivities despite Aloy’s best efforts. Aloy was roped into a Carja strategy game, heartily encouraged by Lana who announced to the entire group of old, Carja men that all Aloy needed to do was learn the game and then she would win. Aloy, who’d never done anything like strategy games before, disagreed, but it no longer mattered in the face of hurt pride. She was challenged by eight people. At once.

Lana was right, of course.

It took four games. Aloy had to grapple with endless rules and clauses. Then on game five, it clicked, and she wiped the floor with everyone else in the room. Wounded pride gave way to grudging respect and then admiration, and suddenly Aloy was everyone’s new best friend. She was even invited to participate in the upcoming Meridian tournament.

She declined. In the midst of all this, she realized Lana was no longer around. She searched the common space and found her nowhere. She took a quick trip upstairs, but she wasn’t in their room either. She asked the innkeep if he’d seen where she’d gone, and he pointed her out the backdoor.

Aloy found Lana leaning against the back wall, wrapped up in conversation with a good-looking Carja man that reminded her a bit of Nil with his sharp features.

“Having fun?” Aloy asked, stepping close. 

Lana started and spun, a wider than usual grin on her face. “Aloy! How did the tai-pho go?”

“Horribly.”

“Really?”

“No, I won.” Aloy crossed her arms and jerked her head. “Who’s this?”

“This?” Lana lightly patted the man’s arm. “This is Ameer.”

Ameer stared at Aloy. Aloy stared back. “Do you know him?”

“Not before today. He started chatting me up, told me he had a funny joke, but I couldn’t hear him so we came out here…”

“I’ll leave you alone so you can hear the joke then.”

Aloy went back inside, pushing the back door cloth covering to the side with more force than was necessary.

The old men cheered at her reentry, inviting her back to play, but she was no longer in the mood. She went upstairs to the room and sat on her bed with her bow, deciding now was the best time to clean and care for her equipment. She hadn’t really gotten the chance recently.

Lana burst into their room. “Aloy! Why’d you leave?”

And it seemed like she wouldn’t get the chance now. “I was tired of socializing.”

“The tavern nightlife too much for you? Not used to all of that, I bet.”

“The Nora don’t throw parties very often. Outcasts even less so.”

“Too bad.”

“Besides, you threw me to the wolves while you went and flirted with _Ameer_ so…”

“Is that jealousy I hear?”

Aloy snorted. “No.” She left her place on the bed to return her bow to its resting place on top of her bags. When she turned around, Lana was there, standing very close.

“You sound jealous.”

Aloy scoffed. “I don’t get jealous.”

Lana reached up and rested her hand on Aloy’s cheek. Aloy froze completely, like prey in the path of an approaching hunter, as Lana gazed at her.

The air grew heavy. Aloy, for one of few times in her life, began to panic. She didn’t know what to do, how to react, as nothing had really prepared her for this level of intimacy with another person. She felt like she couldn’t breathe.

“Sun, you’re so pretty,” Lana breathed. Her hand of Aloy’s cheek was steady.

Aloy felt pretty unsteady herself. “You’re drunk.”

“I’m not. I’d tell you that you’re pretty even if I was.”

“Tell it to your new friend.”

“See? Jealous.” Lana frowned. “Fuck. All that effort to stay away from you, and here I am.”

“What?”

“Stop looking at me like that.”

Aloy tried to avert her eyes. Any irritation from earlier was now replaced by confusion. “I’m not looking at you like anything. You’re the one in my space.”

“You’re the one not moving away,” Lana countered, pulling closer.

Aloy could feel her heart pounding as fast as if she were fighting a Deathbringer. Adrenaline rushed through her, making every detail on Lana’s face come into crystal clear focus. Her eyes, her cheekbones, her mouth.

“Fuck it,” Lana said. Then she pushed up on her toes, using her hand on Aloy’s cheek to pull her closer.

Their lips met. Aloy couldn’t move, couldn’t react. Warmth ran through her stiff chest and into her belly, and she clenched her hands, unsure what to do with them.  
Unsure of what to do.

Lana pulled back. She looked sad. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have— I shouldn’t have done that.”

Aloy blinked. “It’s okay.”

“It’s not.” Lana turned away. “Was that your first?”

Aloy didn’t want to answer. For once, she was ashamed of her own ignorance.

Lana laughed, and it was bitter. “I’m the worst.”

“You’re not!” Aloy responded automatically. “If I didn’t want it, I would’ve pushed you away.” The truth of her own words hit her as she spoke them. She didn’t know what it was to want, but maybe it was the way she felt right now. 

“Lana…” At a loss but determined to gain some control of herself and the situation, Aloy stepped forward, placing herself back in Lana’s space. She rested a hand loosely on Lana’s hip.

Lana didn’t try to move away. She tilted her head up, eyes dark, mouth parted. Aloy met her in the middle, trying again despite the pounding of her heart and the trembling of her hands. It was clumsy. Aloy’s inexperience couldn’t be so easily overcome. She hesitated, then followed Lana’s lead as Lana moved her lips slightly against Aloy’s, as Lana’s hands came up to hold Aloy’s face tenderly.

They swayed together, Aloy slowly growing more confident as she mimicked Lana’s technique and Lana began to shiver in her hold.

When they finally broke apart, Lana was flushed. Aloy was sure she looked the same. She smiled anyway. “Hey, look. You’re blushing. Guess your complexion doesn’t hide it after all.”

“Guess not,” Lana murmured, swiping her thumb along Aloy’s cheek one last time. Then she fully pulled away, gently removing Aloy’s hand from her hip and from her side.

“Is everything okay?” Aloy asked, a tinge of uncertainty and nervousness returning.

“Of course.” Lana wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“What’s wrong? Did I… overstep? I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable.” The idea made Aloy feel wretched.

“No, no! It’s just… tomorrow’s the last day. I don’t want it to be hard for me.” She smiled at Aloy, but it was a weak one. Aloy could see through it. “I already care too much.”

 _Is that really so bad?_ Aloy wanted to ask, but she understood. What could her and Lana possibly be beyond this? Aloy had far too much left to do. Not for the first time, Aloy longed for a life she could never have. “You’re right. This was… nice, though. I won’t forget it.”

“A kiss from me? Only nice? I’m wounded.” Lana placed her hand over her heart. Then, before Aloy could respond, she slipped into bed. “Goodnight, Aloy.”

Aloy took it for the dismissal that it was. She blew out the candles one by one before getting into bed herself. Her heart was still pounding, body still unnaturally warm. It was a long, long time before she was able to sleep.

When Aloy woke the next morning, Lana had disappeared. Her bed was empty, her bags gone. Aloy knew immediately that she wouldn’t find her still in the inn. There was an air of finality in their room. Of finishing.

Aloy gathered her things and raced downstairs. The innkeep was still awake, washing his countertops. He pointed her out the front door, where Carja bustled to and from work, completely ignorant to Aloy’s distress.

Aloy activated her Focus. It had a hard time distinguishing footsteps in such a crowded space and a high-volume walking path. She ran back upstairs, hoping that her Focus might be able to pick up the outline of Lana’s dusty footprints in their room. It did, and Aloy was off, following the trail single-mindedly.

To her surprise, it didn’t lead directly south to Sunstone. Instead, it veered southeast, back the way they had come from hunting Stalkers the day before. That made Aloy slow down slightly and continue more cautiously. What game was Lana playing? Had she changed her mind and decided to run from her parents? Had what had occurred between them driven her away? Aloy wanted to believe that least of all.

She made it a half a mile into the thick jungle vegetation when she heard human voices echoing from directly ahead. Male. Aloy ducked and crouched, blending into the greenery. The voices grew louder. Angrier. And Lana’s trail continued directly towards them.

The morning sunlight grew brighter, breaking through more frequent gaps in the jungle canopy until Aloy came upon a clearing. Two men stood with their backs towards her. Their large figures shielded someone standing in front of them from Aloy’s view. They were heavily armed, one sporting a rattler while the other hefted a firespitter.

This close, their guttural yelling could be made out.

“What are you doing?”

“Where is she?”

“I told you, I don’t know.”

“She’s still in that damn inn, I bet anything.”

“She’s not! She left in the night. I think she knows.”

Aloy stilled, heartbeat picking up speed at Lana’s voice.

“You’re fucking lying!” The firespitter paced forward. “Why would you protect her? After everything we planned?”

“She’ll kill you if you go after her. You don’t stand a chance.”

“We’ll decide that!”

“You _know_ that! She’s destroyed every single one of our outposts, single-handedly. She hasn’t had any help! All the rumors were right! She’s everything we feared, and _you don’t stand a chance!_ ”

Aloy went cold. Her pulse thumped in her ears. Her brain, always so fast, so bright, made the connection immediately. ‘ _Our_.’ ‘ _We.’_

“Your time away has made you a coward,” the rattler spat. “We brought our men. She will not escape us this time, and we will have our vengeance for our fallen brothers.”

Lana’s voice was pleading. “You can’t—”

Aloy had heard enough. She stood and strode out from the tall ferns shielding her, bow nocked and drawn. They didn’t see her, and for a single instant she considered killing them all here and now. Before they had a chance. But another part of her, always the larger part, wanted _answers._

In this moment of hesitation, Lana spotted her. Her eyes went wide, horror and fear painted across her features. The heavy bandits saw this. They each spun around, hands clutching their guns in hasty preparation.

Aloy shot the man with the firespitter directly in the head. The arrow exited his skull and lodged itself in a nearby tree in a series of sickening thuds.

The man with the rattler screamed and raised his weapon. Aloy nocked another arrow, but before she could loose it Lana slammed a long, metal spear directly over the back of the rattler’s head. His eyes rolled up into his skull, and he dropped face-first onto the mossy ground.

The two women stood, panting. Lana spoke first. “Aloy—”

“Drop your weapon.”

“Aloy, I didn’t—”

“Drop your weapon!”

Aloy kept her bow drawn, the arrowhead pointing at Lana’s shoulder. She couldn’t aim at Lana’s head.

Lana dropped her spear to the ground then raised both hands in front of her body. “Aloy, please, let me explain.”

“Oh, you’ll definitely be doing that.” Aloy’s skull pounded with anger. She wanted to scream her rage, her hurt, her betrayal. But that wasn’t who she was, so she didn’t. Lana wouldn’t care, so she didn’t.

It had all been a lie.

“Where are the other men?”

“Aloy—”

“Don’t. I will find them either way.”

“They’re a half a mile southwest of here. Towards Sunstone.”

Aloy bared her teeth. “Sunstone, huh? Very convenient.”

“Aloy, please…”

“That tree.” Aloy gestured with her head. “I’m going to tie you to it. Then I’m going to go kill those bandits. When I come back, we’ll talk. Now move.”  
  
Aloy methodically used her wire to bind Lana to the tree. Lana had fallen silent, no longer trying to plead, and it made Aloy even angrier. Once she was satisfied Lana would be going nowhere, she stalked off back into the undergrowth.

The bandit party, waiting patiently for revenge against the woman who had been so systematically wiping them out, had no idea what was in store for them. And as none would live to tell the tale, nobody would ever find out.

The Ravager and Stormbird Aloy controlled brought nothing but destruction. Aloy listened to the bandits’ screams from her perch on a nearby cliff face, killing any who tried to escape. Aloy was eventually the last left alive, and she surveyed the havoc wrought with both anger and sadness. To be so brutal was not what Elisabet had wanted from her, but was this not what the world warranted? Not everyone could be talked down. Not everyone could be saved. How much better would things have been if Elisabet had killed Ted Faro like he deserved? All these thoughts, justifications to try and make herself feel better. It didn’t work.

When Aloy returned, Lana was where she’d left her. Seeing her sitting there, slumped over her lap, face hidden, made Aloy hurt. She’d trusted Lana. She’d _liked_ Lana.

Lana noticed Aloy’s approach only once Aloy crouched down across the clearing, unable to bring herself any closer.

“Are you going to kill me?” Lana’s voice was dull.

Aloy’s hands trembled. She clenched them tightly into fists. “No.”

“Why not?”

“You know why.”

Lana took in a loud, shaky breath. “Aloy, I’m so sorry.”

“Save it. All I want from you is your explanation. When you’re done, I’m taking you back to Meridian.”

“You’re… bringing me back?”

“The machines will kill you if I leave you here. And I don’t need anything else on my conscience today.”

Lana squeezed her eyes shut, but the tears still fell. She cried silently for a while, and Aloy let her, wondering, _Are those tears for herself? Or are they for the men and women I killed._

Finally Lana collected herself enough to speak. “I was sixteen when I ran away from my parents.”

“ _This_ again—”

“No! Listen! Please.”

Aloy fell silent.

Lana continued. “I had nothing. I knew nothing. I brought money, thinking I could buy care for myself. It was all swindled away from me in the first month. I searched for work, but what work is there for a woman raised to be a trophy? I didn’t know how to build, or to hunt, or to fight. And I didn’t—I didn’t want to sell my body.”

Aloy shifted.

Lana took a moment to breathe. “After two months, I was starving. I had no roof over my head. I feared for my safety every second. An older woman took me in from the side of the road, but then kicked me out the next day when she realized I had literally nothing to give. That’s when the bandits came. It was all a coincidence. I had just fallen to my knees on the ground outside when they busted through. They took her shards, stole her livestock and goods, and then burned her house down.

“Their leader was a man named Rolf. He was in a merciful mood that day. Thought I was pretty. Decided to spare me and take me with them. You have to understand, Aloy. I was desperate. At every turn, I had failed or was beaten down. I was only days away from turning around and trying to return to my home. I would’ve died trying.”

Lana began crying again. Aloy looked away. “So you became a bandit.”

“So I became one of them. They trained me. Taught me how to fight. How to find and track valuable targets. My qualms and my conscience died with every meal they fed me. For I now knew what it was like to be starving, and I refused to let it happen again. They became my friends. My brothers and sisters. When everyone around you is a monster you start to forget what the monsters look like.” Lana paused. “And then, after years of prosperity, the reports of a young Nora huntress with flaming red hair began rolling in. One encampment fell. Then the next, and the next. Rolf thought they were lies. Thought they were exaggerations. Thought that there had to be _more._ ‘A band of Nora are hunting us down’, he said. But then you went and saved the Carja from a great demon, and he realized all the stories were true. So we buckled down and prepared for your arrival. We lured you with the villagers. We planted men in the fields. We thought if we knew you were coming, we could best you.”

“But you were in the cage.”

Lana smiled bitterly. “I watched you slaughter your way through our village from the shadows. I knew what Rolf refused to acknowledge. That we were finished. So I hid in the cage.”

“The bounty was a lie.”

“Partially a lie. I did have a bounty upon my head, once. But my parents are dead now. Their estates are run by my cousin. I thought I could have you bring me here. I could claim my inheritance, give a portion of it to you, then disappear.”

“That doesn’t explain the bandits here. That you left me to meet.”

“I didn’t know—I didn’t, I swear,” Lana begged at Aloy’s sneer. “Ameer. He found me in the inn. He pulled me outside and told me to meet him—”

“So you _did_ know!” Aloy stood and paced, overcome. “You knew and yet you still…”

“I told you I was the worst.”

Aloy couldn’t look at her.

“It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. I wasn’t supposed to _care.”  
_

“Don’t pull that with me. Don’t try and make me pity you. You were toying with me all along.”

“You’re wrong! I grew to care. I swear on my life, strike me down if I lie. How could I not care, Aloy? You’re the most _incredible—“_ She breathed the word like it was a prayer. “—person I’ve ever met in my entire life. For so long, I believed that there was no good in this world. That everyone was out for themselves, one way or another. And I thought that of you, too. Sure, you came to save the villagers, but at what cost? How much would they owe you? How many lives would you take? And my bounty. I thought that would be the only reason you’d take me.”

“That’s enough.”

“You proved me _wrong,_ Aloy. You showed me how wrong I was with every single action you took. Helping everyone in your path. It made me wish… It made me wish you had been around when I first left home.”

Aloy shook her head. It was all too pretty. “And yet you came out here. To confer with the other bandits. You didn’t tell me. What would you have done if they had come for me? Stood aside and watched as they killed me? Like you did for all of your bandit friends?”

“I was _trying_ to talk them down!”

“And you failed!” Aloy slung her bow over her back, completely and utterly finished. “Now their blood is on my hands.”

“How is that my fault? You would’ve hunted them down either way. That’s what you do.”

“Maybe. Maybe not. I destroyed the bandit camps because of the pain they were inflicting on others. These were desperate stragglers. They didn’t have to die.”

“Bullshit. Don’t put your regrets for their deaths on me. You’ve killed far too many for that to work. I may have lied, but I’ve never forced you to do anything.”

Without another word, Aloy cut the wire binding her to the tree. “Get up. We go to Sunstone, like you wanted.”

Lana didn’t argue. In fact, she didn’t speak another word as they made their trek through the jungle to the fields of Sunstone. Aloy simmered with too many feelings to possibly name. She tried to distract herself with her recordings of Elisabet through the Focus, but they only made it worse. The midday sun had risen and fallen when they finally forced their way through the tree line to stand on the fields before Sunstone. The gates of the small outpost stood open, Carja soldiers at attention on the walls.

Aloy stopped. “We’re done.”

Lana glanced at her. There was no smile, no laughter. Only exhaustion and sorrow, and Aloy wished that she could pretend that it had no effect on her. “I can only say this. I’m sorry, Aloy.”

“I’m sorry, too.”

Lana reached into her bag. Aloy stiffened, hand automatically wrapping around her bow string. But Lana had no weapon. Instead, she pulled out a square leather pouch, with a cord wrapped around it. “For you. I know you don’t want it, but… Just look at it once before you throw it away. Please.”

Aloy hesitated. Then she took the package. “Okay.”

“Thank you. Hopefully they can make you understand what my words can’t.”

“I understand enough.”

“I don’t think you do.” Lana looked down. She wrung her hands together. “Someday, if you can find it in your heart to forgive me…” But she never finished the sentence. Instead, she ran a single hand down Aloy’s cheek, and Aloy, for all her hurt, let her. “Goodbye, Aloy. The world doesn’t deserve you.”

Aloy watched her walk away.

Three weeks of travel passed for Aloy before she allowed herself to open the leather packet Lana had gifted her for their final goodbyes. Inside were several leaves of carefully pressed and high-quality brown parchment. Covering the parchment was charcoal sketches of Aloy. Her face, masterfully drawn, stared up at her from page after page. Aloy smiling, Aloy frowning, Aloy laughing. Aloy, focused, staring down the length of her arrow. Aloy, astride a Strider. Sketch after sketch after sketch. The largest portrait had Aloy drawn with head tilted up, chin resting on her hand. The expression on her face was of pride and mischievousness. It reminded Aloy of Lana’s personality, but packaged onto herself.

On the final piece of parchment there were two women, wrapped tightly around one another. The drawing was only half done, their features missing, but Aloy knew who they represented.

It hit her then, what these pictures meant. What Lana had both said and not said.

_I’ve only ever mourned for the things I’ve never had._

Aloy let herself cry. Then she carefully tucked the drawings away, and gazed out from her camp at the vista, Meridian in all its splendor before her. She wondered how much of Lana's words had been truth. She wondered what it would be like, to be able to go back. To be able to have the time, to lack the responsibility, to have what she wanted. Then she tapped her Focus, selecting her most played datapoint.

Elisabet’s voice buzzed through the headpiece. “I never had time. I guess it was for the best.”

“If you had had a child, Elisabet, what would you have wished for him or her?”

“I guess... I would have wanted her to be... curious. And willful - unstoppable, even... but with enough compassion to... heal the world... just a little bit.”

Aloy wondered what Elisabet would think of her now, and watched the stars.

**Author's Note:**

> *okay she doesn't technically get a girlfriend but that's cause she's just too damn busy. girl's gotta work. 


End file.
